The University of Birmingham has launched a £5 million investment plan to double the number of commercial spin outs within five years.
Alta Innovations, the university's commercial arm, will double the number of business managers seeking out new inventions from the institution's 3,400 academics.
Now, for the first time, the £5 million investment fund will enable the university to partner with venture capitalists to invest into its best inventions.
Alta Innovation's chief executive James Wilkie said: "Thanks to this new investment, backed by the university, Alta Innovations will be able to invest directly in its spin outs.
"We will be able to provide very early stage investment into the most exciting inventions that are developed by the university's brilliant academics.
"This new £5 million fund is a direct result of progress by the Alta Innovations that has pushed Birmingham to fifth in the UK for identification of new inventions.
"It allows us to fully realise the potential of inventions that have real potential to benefit society."
Alta Innovations operates at the Birmingham Research Park, on the university's Edgbaston campus.
It is backing a number of the institution's spin out companies including Smart Antenna Technology, which has secured £3.3 million investment to develop a multi-use antenna for laptops and mobile phones.
The firm is also leading the development of a high-tech medical cluster centred around the university and the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Edgbaston.
Last year, the company opened the BioHub, a £7 million facility that provides affordable laboratory space to medical tech start ups.
Dr Wilkie said: "The BioHub is a fantastic facility for early stage medical start ups. The space is affordable and start ups can receive business advice on marketing and protecting their intellectual property."
Dr Wilkie said the BioHub Birmingham was more than half full and had plans in the pipeline for future expansion.
